Everyday, we taste our way through the world.
Taste is one of our five senses. It helps us decipher the flavours we like, compelling us towards some foods over others. We can think of taste as a filtration system; if our mouths are a gateway, taste dictates what’s allowed in.
Taste can also be something more elusive. We speak about taste in reference to our personal styles, preferences and aversions. As is; my taste in music, his taste in fashion, our taste in ideas. Here, taste is also a filtration system but for the ideas, culture, media, people and experiences we choose to consume and celebrate.
Taste is important. It shapes our identities and engagement with the world.
But where do our tastes come from? Do they emerge from within, or do we adopted them from others? As algorithms increasingly decide what music, media and ideas we consume, how might our tastes and preferences be changing?
I hope these prompts encourage you to uncover some surprising insights about your own tastes!
Happy journaling x
"I have the simplest tastes.
I am always satisfied with the best"
Oscar Wilde
Good taste, bad taste - 10 minutes
Make two lists:
Write five areas of life where you have strong tastes or preferences.
Write five areas of life where you don’t have strong tastes or preferences.
What do you notice about your two lists? Was one easier to write than the other? Are you more or less fussy than you thought?
Stream of consciousness writing - 15 minutes
Pick one (or all) of the following prompts and begin writing the first thing that comes to mind, without stopping to edit:
Is taste something that is shaped by others, or do we shape our own tastes?
Can we become blinded by our tastes?
Have your tastes change over time? In response to what?
How might technology (social media, digital streaming, AI) be influencing our preferences and tastes?
What’s your favourite flavour? What gives you the ick?
Read and respond - 15 minutes
Pick a quote. What does this mean to you? What ideas, colours, memories come to mind as you read it?
"Rules of taste enforce structures of power" Susan Sontag.
"People are always happy to tell you what they think of as bad taste, but when you ask them what they really like themselves, they're suddenly very vulnerable" Grayson Perry.
Write in whatever style suits you: bullet points, mind map, stream of consciousness, a letter to the author, a drawing.
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